Alone?
by Meals on Wheels
Summary: Percy didn't like to think of himself as an antisocial person, even if he didn't really like to spend time with others, doing what they wanted to do. He much prefered to be doing what he wanted.


Percy Weasley doesn't seem to get enough love in the fandom, people tend to hate him a lot. They say he's the worst Weasley, but I just see him as someone who got too far in with the wrong people, and it was too late to get out by the time he realised. He was stuck,though he did try to make a sort of effort to bridge the gap in the sixth book, but that failed thanks to the twins and Ginny.

Anyway, I haven't read much about Audrey and his relationship, but I just based her character around what I think Percy needs in a love interest. It didn't work with Penelope because she was too strong and smart a person, so I tried to make Audrey operate more from feeling than thought. I hope you all enjoy, it took me a while to write because I needed it just right with the characters and all.

Also reviews make me happy so if you liked it or hated it review, I will be grateful for any and all feedback :)

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><p>On the first anniversary of the fall of He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named, Percy Weasley was not celebrating with his family. He was not drinking to Harry Potter, the "Chosen Boy who Lived and saved all from You-Know-Who" nor was he partying with strange wizards he had never met before, like he was the year previous. He was not even with his older brother, acting as support while his wife birthed their first child. Instead, Percy was walking through a Muggle street with no real aim at all other than to avoid the wizarding world.<p>

Percy didn't like to think of himself as an antisocial person, even if he didn't really like to spend time with others, doing what they wanted to do. He much prefered to be doing what he wanted, which tended to include working on papers for the minister or spending time alone at his appartment, catching up on sleep. He enjoyed being alone, at least he did again now that he had a family to go to when he was sick of being by himself. Loneliness is always more enjoyable when it's voluntary. Over the past year now he had had more social experiences than the three years previous to the fall of You-Know-Who. This meant less alone self-reflection time than he was used to. He really shouldn't complain though, as it had resulted from the fall of He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named.

Walking through the Muggle street, he noticed that even the Muggles seemed happier tonight. They must notice the overly-cheerful attitude of the Magical Community within their own, what with the occasional robed man or woman dancing down the streets in celebration. _Good moods do tend to be contagious_, Percy thought, as he noticed a wizard embracing a Muggle stranger and lifting her off her feet, while the woman laughed and laughed. He saw the Muggles' family laughing and clapping for the wizard as he pranced off.

Seeing this family made Percy think of his own. They would surely not be missing him, even if he had turned down an invite to the Burrow for a celebratory dinner. _Mother has enough on her hands without having to worry about where her middle child has gone_, Percy thought. Percy was glad he was able to apologies to his mother before the Battle of Hogwarts the year previous. He knew he hurt her more so than the rest of his family, when he had chosen the Ministry over them. He remembered, with regret, slamming his apartment door on her when she had come to talk with him.

They had all been forgiving enough. Fred being the first to do so. It still hurt. To think about him. He had taken his brothers death nearly as badly as George, who would still look around for his twin when he thought of a joke or prank to play on Percy or anyone else. The look of new found defeat was always the same when he remembered. He would never be the same, just as no one else in the family would ever be, without Fred. They tried, however, to move on for George's sake.

Percy thought that maybe at the Burrow tonight George might be away from the celebrations; down in the fields where his family had created a memorial for the boys twin. He hoped that one of his other sibblings would notice if this were the case and seek him out. He hoped they would all stop being distracted by their significant others to realise a family member was hurting. Percy knew they wouldn't though. They never had before.

After graduating from Hogwarts, Percy had applied for work at the Ministry, within the Department of International Magical Cooperation with his long time girlfriend Penelope Clearwater. He had always wanted to work at the ministry, like his father, but was not too fussed about which department, so when Penny had insited they applied together for the department, he just went along with her. Soon after they began working Penny was offered work internationally and took up the oppertunity without a second thought. She left him in a department where the only person farmiliar to him was his boss, Mr Crouch. As she left on her last day in Britain, she had pulled Percy asside and told him they would have to break up. That they couldn't keep up a relationship while she was working in Bulgaria.

"You understand, right, Percy?" She had asked him and as she smiled with all the excitment in the world at his nod, she had neglected to notice the saddness behind his false smile.

After Penelope left, Percy became almost obsessed with work, as a way to avoid the pain of loss. Eventually he found himself in way over his head when he realised one night, sitting alone in his appartment, he had no one anymore. He had pushed his family away as distractions from an ambition he never even intended to have. He was glad that this time in his life had finally passed, as he no longer felt the aching guilt that he had felt ever since Penelope left and since he abandoned his family.

Looking down at his watch, Percy noticed it was much too late for him to be outside, walking around aimlessly. He decided to enter an empty all night coffee shop, to get a fresh hit of caffeeine before apperating to his appartment. He didn't feel much like celebrating with his family tonight anyway. Searching around, Percy spotted an all night cafe which appeared to be the only place open on the quiet street. Pushing the door open, he took a booth facing the counter and looked around.

It was by no means a pretty place. The coffee bar seemed to feature the colour gray everywhere. Gray on the walls, whether intentional or not, graying tiles and even gray seats and tables. The booth Percy was sitting in was comfortable enough, at least more so than it was walking out in the cold. A heating device seemed to be in use over in the far corner, as Percy viewed distorted waves of what he could only guess to be hot air bellowing from the machine. The counter was mostly cleared, with a till on it that looked no different than the one used at Ollivanders.

As Percy's eyes glazed over the door which clearly lead to the back kitchen, a woman appeared there. Dressed in eye-catching baby blue, the girl had the lightest blond hair Percy had ever seen, pulled back into a modest pony-tail. Over her blue dress the girl wore an off white apron, signifying the many times the girl would have had to have washed it to get it at least a little clean. When she saw Percy her brown eyes locked onto him as she smiled a pretty little smile, and walked over. As she approached closer, Percy noticed her eyes were lidded with dark black bags, clearly from exhaustion.

"What can I get for you?" The girl asked as she reached Percy's booth. Her voice was a little vague, as if she wasn't entirely sure she should be asking him the question.

It was then Percy realised he didn't have any muggle money, and, feeling rather stupid, he told her so.

"I'm sorry, I don't have any money. Would it be possible to just get a glass of water?"

The girl looked confused.

"We don't sell water."

Percy didn't want to buy water, nor could he, as he had just told the girl he had no money. Further explination was obviously necessary for this Muggle.

"Would I be able to get the water without charge then?" Percy said. "I would appreciate it."

"I don't think my manager would be okay if I gave out free water." The girl said, looking nervous. "I have a bottle of water I buy for work though, maybe I can pour you some of mine?"

She nodded at her own conclusion, and turned to go back to the kitchen to retrieve a glass and her own water. Percy was bewildered at the girls strange thought process. Wouldn't tap water surfice?

As the waitress returned, she brought her bottled water, along with two glasses. Percy wondered why she had brought two, when there was only one of him. He was about to ask the girl, as she poured out her water into the two glasses. She handed him one and kept the other.

"Why did you pour one for yourself?" Percy asked, puzzled at the girls behaviour.

"I wanted to drink with you." She said simply, as she took a sip, and looked expectantly at Percy.

Percy drunk deeply from his glass, only then remembering he was, indeed, very thirsty. When he had resurfaced after drinking, the girl poured him more.

"You could have just drunk out of the bottle. It is your water, you know." Percy told the girl. "And now you have to wash two cups instead of just one. You just doubled your work."

"That's alright," the girl said, slowly understanding. "I'm payed to work, right?"

The waitress seemed to be waiting for Percy to answer. Apparently she didn't know the meaning of the word "rhetorical".

"I suppose so," Percy said as he took another sip of water.

This girl was very strange indeed. As Percy watched her, she seemed to only take drinks of water when he did, as if she was taking the "drink with you" part of her response literally. Despite the black bags under her eyes, she seemed very alert, as she was able to drink just as he did. Percy wondered why a girl like her was working at this time of night, she didn't look much older than eighteen.

"It's a good thing you didn't let me give you free water," The girl said, clearly thinking. "I kinda need this job, I don't know what I would do if I got fired."

Percy highly doubted the girl would have been fired if she had of given tap water out to a poor thirsty customer, but then, he didn't know the Muggle world, or even this Muggle girl. Maybe she was already in trouble with her supperiors for something. _Even so_, Percy thought, _they shouldn't be making her work this late at night. Even with You-Know-Who gone, there is still the odd criminal around, both Muggle and Wizard criminals._ Percy decided to say something about this to the girl.

"Why are you working this late. It's dangerous isn't it?" Percy questioned the girl.

"Maybe, but I need the money. Most of my pay goes back to the home, so I need as much as I can so I can still afford rent and things." The girl replied as she swirled her water in her cup around, making an amusing whirlpool for herself.

"What home?" Percy asked her, watching the whirlpool with her.

"My orphanage." She said simply.

"Orphanage?"

"Gosh you ask a lot of questions," The girl said, putting down her glass. "Why don't we talk about you, right? What are you doing in a coffee shop without money for coffee?"

Percy was taken aback. He didn't realise he was asking the poor girl so many questions. He also didn't know how to answer her own, but she did not really seem too interested in his response anyway.

"I apologise for the questioning. This isn't an Auror investigation," Percy said, jokingly. Then he remembered this girl was a Muggle and didn't know what an Auror was, so he quickly moved on. "How about I introduce myself? I'm Percy Weasley."

Percy stuck out his hand to shake hers, as he had frequently done in the ministry when meeting a new person who was important to the Minister. The waitress took his hand, and shook it vigorously and comically, so much so Percy tried not to laugh at her odd behaviour.

"People never shake my hand," The waitress said happily. "I'm Audrey."

Percy and the waitress, Audrey, spent the next few hours sitting together in that coffee shop, talking. She only complained a few more times about Percy's constant questions, but he repayed the favour by answering any questions of hers. He tried his hardest to answer truthfully but some things he couldn't tell her, considering she was a Muggle.

"So what do you do?" Audrey asked, sipping her water as Percy did so.

"I work for the ministry," Percy said, as truthfully and indirectly as possible.

"Wow, you work for the Prime Minister? You must be really smart then! High school and everything, hey?" Audrey said, clearly impressed.

"You didn't go to high school?" Percy questioned Audrey.

"Nuns couldn't afford it. They sent me to work here, because it's close to the home. It doesn't pay as well as other places, but I stay here for them. Thats why I give them most of my pay so the other girls get to go to school." Audrey said all this as she looked down into her glass at the water within.

"I thought you people had a public schooling system?" Percy questioned, concerned. From growing up in a poor family, he had always had a special sensitivity towards the less fortunate, especially now he was older.

"England does, but the Sisters couldn't pay for books and uniform. It's okay really though, Percy, I'm alright how I am. I get by" Aurdrey said with an optimism way beyond her years.

Percy knew, however, that most of the time just getting by was not enough. It wasn't for him when his school mates would tease him for having old robes, and even older books. He had been able to deal with this though with the support of his older brother Bill. If Audrey was raised in an orphanage she would have had no one to help her, to confide in and to be loved by. Percy felt sorry for her.

"The Nuns at the home are good to me. They let me visit all my family whenever I can" Audrey told Percy, as she smiled.

"Family?" Percy questioned the apparent orphange.

"All the girls at the home. And the Nuns. They're my family." Audrey said, optimistically.

Percy watched Audrey as she looked down into her glasses, smiling as if remembering good times from her childhood. It was great that she was able to still have a family, even if she was abandoned by her own. It seemed odd, but this uneducated girl was very interesting to Percy. She seemed delightfully unpredictable and loyal to those around her. She did not leave her friends at her orphanage even though she clearly had the opportunity to. She could have abandoned her family, like Percy had, whenever she wanted, but had not. She could have left her low paying, long houred job for a better one further away, like Penelope had, but stayed here.

Audrey sighed before glumping down the rest of her water. She stood from her seat and took Percy's empty glass.

"It was nice to talk to you, Mr Percy, even if you do ask a lot of questions. I have to go and wash our cups now. Wait for me here?"

Percy nodded to Audrey, who grinned at him and left towards the kitchen with her glass and his own. Once she had gone, Percy looked outside and saw that the horizon was lightening. He had spent all night talking to this Muggle, when he could have been at his appartment, catching up on some much needed sleep. Percy realised this, but did not feel as though his time spent with Audrey had been wasted. It was a good way to spend the anniversary of the downfall of the greatest of Muggle oppressors.

"I'm going to the orphanage soon, Percy," Audrey called through the kitchen door. "At sunrise. Do you want to come too?"

Percy smiled to himself because for some reason, he did.

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><p>Yay, another story finished! If you liked it, and I hope you did, review, favourite, whatever, it makes me happy. Hopefully Percy's portrayal wasn't just my own crazy interpretation, hopefully theres others out there that see him this way too :)<p> 


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